Avocado Strike In Mexico Ends

During the weeks of October 29 and November 5, farmers in Mexico were unable to harvest, pack and ship avocados to the US due to disruptions in the avocado industry at the pack house and in the fields in Mexico. As a result, there were no avocados available for delivery between November 5 and November 17.

Avocado Harvest Resumes photo courtesy of www.thepacker.com

The avocado industry in Mexico has faced numerous growing pains as it has stretched, both in terms of supply and infrastructure, to meet rapidly increasing demand for avocados in the past 5-10 years. Currently, a group of growers is reacting to various market conditions, including but not limited to price volatility and the impact of ineligible fruit being passed to the market for export. As a result of these disruptions, the majority of shippers have not been able to export fruit from Mexico during the week of October 29 nor during the week of November 5.

Avocado harvest resumes in Mexico
As of November 14th, workers are harvesting avocados in Mexico again, more than two weeks after a growers’ strike dried up exports to the U.S. While the harvest has started, representatives of U.S. importers who own packinghouses in Michoacán have said that it may take up to a week for supplies to hit U.S. store shelves.